White Privilege exists whether you know it, acknowledge it, or understand it. Any attempts to convince me that you, a white person, don’t have White Privilege will result in laughter, mockery, and possibly a beat down.
It is a given that, whenever I engage in debate with a white person and mention privilege, the white person in question gets all upset. “I do NOT have privilege!” they say, and then begin to tell the story of their poor, rural upbringing or something. I think this reaction stems from two sources. Firstly, White Liberal Guilt, which I have written about before. Secondly, a misunderstanding of the word ‘Privilege’.
When most people hear Privilege or are referred to as Privileged their mind immediately thinks of economic privilege: people who are rich, or are born rich, who have a leg up in society or get by because their parents have a famous name or something. Paris Hilton is an example of that kind of privileged person. Most white people are not like Paris Hilton, nor would I suggest that they are. That would be cruel.
What they don’t realize is that economic privilege is only one kind of privilege. When I speak of White Privilege, I am not speaking of economics (though they may come into play based on the individual), I am speaking of unearned advantages one has because one is born White. That’s not the only kind of Privilege there is, of course. Another I’m very familiar with is Heterosexual Privilege.
Many people who are smarter and more erudite than I have explained White Privilege, so I will turn this post over to their words. Excerpted of course, so be sure to click on the links and read the full text. This post is required reading for anyone who wishes to engage me in any debate on White Privilege or who insists that it doesn’t exist (or it doesn’t exist for you).
White Trash Blues: Class Privilege v. White Privilege
If you blog about white privilege, you’re probably sick to death of people playing the “white trash” card in your comments. Their argument usually goes something like this:
- “Being white didn’t give me all these privileges you’re talking about.”
- “I know plenty of [minority] people who are better off than I am.”
- And the advanced version, which I’m guilty of using myself: “It’s really more about class than it’s about race.”
[...]
Yes, I have a legitimate grievance against the system. Yes, I’ve lost out on things because I didn’t have the $20 to invest or know the magic social password that would have marked me “normal” (read: “middle class, preferably white”). And yes, it hurts when you don’t fit in with your own race because of your class, and you don’t fit in with your class because of your race. It’s hard to see privilege around that stuff, but the examples are out there.
[...]
My approach has always been to look at all the types of privilege that affect an individual. Take me, for example. I have white privilege and heterosexual privilege and able-bodied privilege working for me; I have class privilege and male privilege working against me. In the case of poor whites, the class privilege often takes more from them than the white privilege gives them (i.e., the college admissions board prefer my skin color, but if I can’t somehow pay tuition, I’m not getting in). In my personal experience, white privilege may be a total bust, and I have the right to feel that way: I do not have the right to muddy a discussion of white privilege with all my anti-privileges. But before I learned to separate the types of privilege, I’m afraid I probably did that once or twice. Not in the “minorities have it so easy” tone that marks one type of troll; I just couldn’t figure out which part of this stuff I wasn’t getting.
Privilege Is Driving a Smooth Road And Not Even Knowing It
The more privileged you are, the easier it is to envision human beings as pure individuals, unconnected to other individuals in any way that matters.
It sometimes puzzles conservatives that progressives are so concerned with what people think. What is racism, sexism, homophobia, etc, after all, other than a way some people think about some other people? And as long as I’m free to pursue my own self-interest, what does it matter what others think of me?
For someone with a lot of privilege, the rational answer is, “it doesn’t matter at all.” The more privileged you are, the less other people’s thoughts count. You go into a store, and you buy what you want, or you don’t buy. You don’t have to worry about what the store clerks think of you - what could matter less?
…
To someone with a lot of privilege, what strangers think is irrelevant. To someone in a less privileged position, what strangers think of you determines what kind of access you get to the complex network of relationships that make up our society and our economy. When strangers often think less of you because of your sex or race, you have less access to the material benefits of our society and economy.
…
Of course, everyone - regardless of race and sex - will hit occasional bumps on the road. And everyone, white men included, has put out some sort of effort to get where they got. But when the folks on the smoother road go faster and further, let’s not pretend it’s because they’re better drivers.
White Whine: Reflections on the Brain-Rotting Properties of Privilege
To truly understand a nation, a culture, or its people, it helps to know what they take for granted.
After all, sometimes the things that go unspoken are more powerful than the spoken word, if for no other reason than the tendency of unspoken assumptions to reinforce core ways of thinking, feeling and acting, without ever having to be verbalized (and thus subjected to challenge) at all.
What’s more, when people take certain things for granted, anything that goes against the grain of what they perceive as “normal” will tend to stand out like a sore thumb, and invite a hostility that seems reasonable, at least to those dispensing it, precisely because their unspoken assumptions have gone uninterrogated for so long.
Thus, every February I encounter people who are apoplectic at the thought of Black History Month, and who insist with no sense of irony or misgiving that there should be no such thing, since, after all, there is no White History Month–a position to which they can only adhere because they have taken for granted that “American history” as told to them previously was comprehensive and accurate, as opposed to being largely the particular history of the dominant group.
In other words, the normalcy of the white narrative, which has rendered every month since they popped out of their momma’s wombs White History Month, escapes them, and makes the efforts of multiculturalists seem to be the unique break with an otherwise neutral color-blindness.
Race to Our Credit: Denial, Privilege and Life as a Majority
Sometimes it can be difficult, having a conversation with those whose political views are so diametrically opposed to one’s own.
But even more challenging, is having a discussion with someone who simply refuses to accept even the most basic elements of your worldview. At that point, disagreement is less about the specifics of one or another policy option, and more about the nature of social reality itself.
This is what it can be like sometimes, when trying to discuss the issue of white privilege with white people. Despite being an obvious institutionalized phenomenon to people of color and even some whites, white privilege is typically denied, and strongly, by most of us.
…
Denying one’s privileges is, of course, nothing if not logical. To admit that you receive such things is to acknowledge that you are, at some level, implicated in the process by which others are oppressed or discriminated against. It makes fairly moot the oft-heard defense that “I wasn’t around back then, and I never owned slaves, or killed any Indians,” or whatever.
If one has reaped the benefits of those past injustices (to say nothing of ongoing discrimination in the present) by being elevated, politically, economically and socially above persons of color, for example — which whites as a group surely have been thanks to enslavement, Indian genocide and Jim Crow — then whether or not one did the deed becomes largely a matter of irrelevance.
Of course, what is ultimately overlooked is that denial of one’s privilege itself manifests a form of privilege: namely, the privilege of being able to deny another person’s reality (a reality to which they speak regularly) and suffer no social consequence as a result.
White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack
“I was taught to see racism only in individual acts of meanness, not in invisible systems conferring dominance on my group”
I have often noticed men’s unwillingness to grant that they are overprivileged, even though they may grant that women are disadvantaged. They may say they will work to women’s statues, in the society, the university, or the curriculum, but they can’t or won’t support the idea of lessening men’s. Denials that amount to taboos surround the subject of advantages that men gain from women’s disadvantages. These denials protect male privilege from being fully acknowledged, lessened, or ended.
…
As a white person, I realized I had been taught about racism as something that puts others at a disadvantage, but had been taught not to see one of its corollary aspects, white privilege, which puts me at an advantage.
I think whites are carefully taught not to recognize white privilege, as males are taught not to recognize male privilege. So I have begun in an untutored way to ask what it is like to have white privilege. I have come to see white privilege as an invisible package of unearned assets that I can count on cashing in each day, but about which I was “meant” to remain oblivious. White privilege is like an invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions, maps, passports, codebooks, visas, clothes, tools , and blank checks.
…
I decided to try to work on myself at least by identifying some of the daily effects of white privilege in my life.
1. I can if I wish arrange to be in the company of people of my race most of the time.
3. If I should need to move, I can be pretty sure of renting or purchasing housing in an area which I can afford and in which I would want to live.
4. I can be pretty sure that my neighbors in such a location will be neutral or pleasant to me.
6. I can turn on the television or open to the front page of the paper and see people of my race widely represented.
7. When I am told about our national heritage or about “civilization,” I am shown that people of my color made it what it is.
8. I can be sure that my children will be given curricular materials that testify to the existence of their race.
10. I can be pretty sure of having my voice heard in a group in which I am the only member of my race.
11. I can be casual about whether or not to listen to another person’s voice in a group in which s/he is the only member of his/her race.
As I said, these are only excerpts. You really should read all of these pieces. And you really need to understand that you do have White Privilege if you are White. The question before you is: What are you going to do about it?
Tags: White Privilege What is White Privilege? Privilege
*cries because we have the same name*
Hey Erica-
Look, the reason that many black people here would feel that way because without fail you managed to throw out the most common rebuttals/complaints every white person has said at us. And each and every one thinks they’re throwing out a gold nugget of knowledge that Black America *somehow* didn’t know about. Seriously, us being lazy and cursing affirmative action is so 1990s. The average debater on our side has been addressed all you said above. Meaning you’ve not read up on the issues. Remotely. And that you know less than 5 black people to any significant extent.
I’ve said those responses to this sophistry so many times . . . if you’re up to an actual debate you can easily find the means to all of your answers to research and respond against.
Now, if you go hear our side of the story and are still not convinced (which you certainly may not be), then please, come back with your Advanced White People’s Angry Responses. Many have moved passed you.
Just one thing that continues to irk me: why do white people think it’s a fair trade off to say racial terms with fair/better treatment and jobs. Because I’ll certainly trade with you.
And for the last time: Affirmative Action is grossly overrated. Ironically Erica it’s helping you out more than any Black person (AA mainly helps out white women). So you’d get the job before me.
We’re not sexist; we’re hiring (of course white) women! :D
Hey Erica,
Alright, fair enough. You are right, about me knowing less than five black people (lol, was it really that obvious?). Though, if I did know any black people significantly, I doubt that we would talk about these issues. I don’t have a choice though, I live in Saskatoon, SK, Canada. Predominantly white. Anyway, I thought I should make it clear that I wasn’t denying the racist social/justice system. Just saying that I was tired of the certain people in the black community who list white people as one of the things on why their lives didn’t turn out so well.
“Just one thing that continues to irk me: why do white people think it’s a fair trade off to say racial terms with fair/better treatment and jobs. Because I’ll certainly trade with you.”
Okay, I did not say that it was a fair trade at all! I mentioned those two things separately. I put them in separate paragraphs. Better treatment at jobs is definitely more of an issue than racial terms. And on a side note… I don’t think you would want to trade with me, not yet at least. I’m still in high school, so I work at a minimum wage job.
Anyway, looking back at my comment, I did sound kind of harsh/ignorant. I’ll blame it on my PMS and sleep deprivation.
One thing I know for sure is that racism will never go away because people consider different things to be racist.
((and I actually did read up on the issues, if you consider wikipedia as a valid source)) :)
What Clampet said about the “White Club”, try to join or burn it down was interesting.. What does it take to join this club? White people ACT nice and shit, but that shit is mostly fake. I’m Filipino+White and i kinda see what you’re talking about, but If we join this club it’s like telling you all that it’s okay to do what you’re doing.. But it’s not. Now don’t get it twisted, I’m not some urban wigger dickriding blacks.. not at all. I get in where i fit in with my Gureillapino and Latino partners.. But i don’t hate white people either, i just hate when they look at you like they’re “superior”.
Watch that movie Black Mama, White Mama to get an idea of how white people and black people see my people..
Respect my club and we’ll respect yours..
ABW,
“What am I going to do about it?” Splendid question! This white man is going to attempt address it.
First, let me say that this question is critical to white men who can see the underlying structure of privilege in their lives AND those same white men whose beliefs in right and wrong result in purposeful action.
How many white men in the U.S. majoring in Sociology, History, Education, or Political Science have studied these issues of racism, class, sexism, and social stratification but quickly lose sight of them upon graduation and the first job offer? How many well-intentioned white men write passionate law school entrance essays on their desire to serve underprivileged people only to go into corporate law upon graduation? (Because of crushing debt, the lure of the green back, or a combination of both.) Yes, too many.
May I be so bold as to suggest that the opposite of caring is not hatred? It is apathy.
And when it comes to matters or race, class, and sexism, apathy coupled with what I call aggressive ignorance abounds among white men in the U.S.
ABW, you know all this as well, if not better, than I do. But, what I have described above is not even the worst of conditions.
What I consider to be the worst condition that pervades the lives of a growing number of white men is one where we are faced with clear, unequivocal, unambiguous proof of inequalities in race, class, and sex (or any other social/economic horror) and simply walk on unmoved and unaffected.
What I am talking about is beyond the white apathy and idiotic arguments. And unless you spend a lot of time in the company of many white men this will not be that obvious: It is the mindset that no longer desires to raise important questions about how we should relate to each other or how should we uncover our purpose for living? It is the disposition of heart that causes one to do nothing more than cast a blank stare at the sight of thousands in New Orleans who suffered (and still suffer) after Katrina, and a yawn at the unfolding story in Jena, Louisiana. It is the belief that you, ABW, would be doing us a favor by loading a weapon and waxing us, not to mention the white men who work in Mortuaries and look at the corpses with envy. The suicide statistics on white men in the U.S. is just one of many indicators of what I am talking about.
What I have described above is what could be called CASUAL NIHILISM. There is a passage in the New Testament of the Bible that warns against living in hypocrisy and lies because it leads to “seared conscience”. ( 1 Timothy, I believe). From my view, that is a conscience absorbs hypocrisy and lies to the point that one becomes incapable of responding to joy or suffering, or not being able to function in relationships. I can elaborate much more heavily on this, but I think I have made my point.
Yes, the level of privilege we have been born into becomes a curse when it is not appropriated responsibly, compassionately, and discretely. It is been whimsically noted by people of color that many white men have no “flavor” or “soul”. Well, that whimsical remark has become quite prophetic. One black comedian (Chris Rock, perhaps? ) once asked, “Why do white men like to play with death so much?” I thinks he revealed something about the condition of white men by simply raising that question. Toni Morrison hits on these themes in some of her writing and poetry as well.
Back to your question - What am I going to do about it?
Understanding and knowing that I have been born and raised in a position of privilege in U.S. society, my hope and prayer is that I can live responsibly and with compassion for others. That I would be alert enough to seize opportunities to meaningfully invest in others and teach my three children to do the same by modeling it.
That I would become angered not at incovenience, but at injustice.
That I would not grow cold or cynical…or worse, unfeeling. That I would remain vigilant against the onslaught of skewed messages and mindless consumption that come from every direction. That I would maintain a sober mind and a tender & teachable heart while interacting with others different from myself.
Yours,
Adam
I really enjoyed your perspective and linked to you as a resource for my post on white privilege at thedandelionpostings.blogspot.com
I wish I could explain about the machine we live in better then perhaps you would see that it’s not white privilege bit social rewards that drive the system. Yes whites prefer to see whites succeed but that is only because they don’t think blacks deserve it because of the childish way they demand rights and privileges. The machine dictates we earn rights and rewards and everyone can do it but not as easily as whites can because they are taught from birth to succeed just as the Japanese are taught. Asians have a higher level of achievement than whites do and a greater hatred of blacks than other race on earth does but that is because they see blacks as a disease that must not be allowed to infect their machine whereas whites see blacks as a cancer and try to find a cure to get rid of them (AIDS, crack, etc) but then Asians don’t live in a society where their commander in chief president can be murdered in plain sight and the suspects get away scot free.I don’t know about you but I would rather be part of that power rather than an enemy of it.
^^^ *sigh* happy Monday, all!
As a white person, I feel contact shame.
“It’s not racism, it’s just that whites don’t think blacks deserve success and see them as a cancer. Also, all Asians are the same. And they hate blacks even more than I do. So that’s OK!”
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By the way….what is contact shame….prhps y cn xpln t m kds wh blck ppl hv spt n thm nd clld thm hlf brds nd thr rplsv nms….tll thm wh wh ppl kck thm nd hrt thm wth wrds…..ll bcs m wf s Jmcn nd wr mrrd ch thr wth lv nd r tryng t rs fml. Tll thm fr m wll y?, bcs m trd f mkng xcss fr ll f y nd y bld bd bhvr.
tl;dr but I’m gonna have some fun, anyway..
Thanks for assuming that we aren’t well-read and don’t travel. [/sarcasm] <– has a personal library of over 200 books, has lived in Japan for 4 years, and vacationed in S.Korea.
Maybe if you weren’t such an entitlement prick these things won’t happen to you.
My experience in foreign countries was always lovely.
Addendum to previous comment: Maybe if you didn’t base your ideas about people on what you see you seen in movies, your experience would’ve been better.
And all of their homegrown miscreants get a pat on a head and a lolly?
*hee-hee!…I used “miscreant”!
First clue: “my country
Ever seen statistics of people arrested for drug dealing and those convicted of the same crime. 2nd clue: It’s not because they were “innocent”.
Let’s backtrack a moment, shall we?
O rly?
“Damn, negroes! It’s all your fault your ancestors were dragged thousands of miles away from their homes, raped, had your families separated with the bang of an auction gavel, forced to live through years of Jim Crow laws and the resulting discrimination practices that continue to this day…
“Uh, waitaminute…”
One more time in slow motion please:
Your wife and children have my deepest sympathies….
…For having to live with an asshole like you.
Damn. Just. Damn.
I’m with Angel H., I truly truly feel sorry for you wife and kids. -.o
We’ve come to that time in the festivities when Brett has said enough racist crap to be put on moderation. Everyone cheer! yaaaaaaaaaay! I am disemvoweling his post because it’s just a long racist rant, but Angel did such a good job poking holes in it!
Also, Brett: “By the way….what is contact shame”
Contact shame is the shame one feels when a person (like you) enters a space (like this) and says truly disgusting and shameful things (as you did) and makes the non-crazy people in that space (like us) feel dirtier just by having you around.
Also, I think Veronica was specifically referring to the fact that you’re SO not a credit to your race. And anyone reading your words might rightfully take away from them that “white people are crazy”, thus negatively impacting how they interact with Veronica, who is so very not crazy. You’re tainting all of your good, white brethren & sisteren here, dude. Might want to think about how your words will make THEM look before you open your mouth–excuse me, place fingers at keys–again.
Hmm.. something’s up with wordpress this morning, so the disemvoweling will have to wait. Hopefully the moderation took.
“What are you going to do about it?”
What would you do about it if positions were reversed?
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Blacks are, and always have been, more violent, primitive and prone to crime.
Dude, that’s your “best” argument? Racist bullshit straight out of Heart of Darkness that ignores every single bit of historical evidence? You must know fuck-all about white history if you’re gonna claim that whites are less violent, primitive, and prone to crime. But hey, if that’s the best you can do, I guess anti-racists can take heart.
Dear Truth & Logic,
You’ve displayed neither in your comments here. In fact, you’ve revealed yourself to be a bigoted, racist, complete asshole. Check the Rules link above, man. That kind of language gets you banned.Thus, you are banned. I’m sure you’ll just chalk it up to this bullshit:
Liberals have tried to control discussions by framing the rules in such a way as to render their opponents’ views inadmissible on account of “offensiveness.”
Well, guess what, offensive language is not admissible as anything but the rantings of offensive people. Why would anyone, liberal or conservative, engage with an offensive, prejudiced jerk? I certainly wouldn’t, and won’t. Goodbye.
I am someone for whom white privilege was a bust because class privilege (or more accurately, the lack thereof) took far more away from me than white privilege gave me. However, that does not entitle me (or any other poor white person) to tell blacks that they don’t suffer injustices due to discrimination and ongoing racism in this country. Injustices suffered by poor whites are NOT an excuse to invalidate the injustices suffered by others. I think we really need to be clear on that.
Yes, there are poor whites who have been, and who continue to be socially and economically left out. In fact, most of the poor in this country are white. Those of us who are poor whites are not even acknowledged by members of our race who are better off. They refer to us as “trailer trash” , as ‘white trash.” Is that not all the more reason why poor whites who are disenfranchised should have respect and understanding for the struggles of blacks when we are both often beaten down by the same oppressor: the rich whites?
This is why I feel more like a “sista” than a “cracker”. As such, I am sorely disappointed in those who wish to cite examples of classism in order to dismiss the very real problems of racism. Please do not confuse the issues.
Hey Jacqueline-
However, the issues of race and socioeconomic status (and gender and sexual orientation for that matter) cannot be viewed by alone. All of these dimensions intersect and affect the others. That’s precisely why they are so difficult to talk about and should be talked together.
I do disagree with your statement that you, as a white person of lower economic status, have not seen any benefits of white privilege. Yes, there is a pecking order to the benefits of white privilege, and those with more economic means are at the top. But all whites do benefit from being white, though sometimes in different ways.
I resently read a book that I would recommend which discusses whiteness and lower socioeconomic status: Not Quite White: White Trash and the Boundaries of Whiteness by Matt Fray (2006). For those who are familiar with Omi and Winnant, Fray is a pupil of theirs. This book traces the origin of “white trash” and examines the category of whiteness amongst white Americans of lower economic status throughout history.
I have no idea what to do about my white privilige. I know it exists, I know it is wrong…but I don’t know how to reverse it. There has to be some action that is more productive than feeling guilty. Ideas?
re: olympia
gosh, if ONLY there were resources out there to help white people! if only someone, somewhere, had worked to combat racism before!
Olympia,
On a personal level, just be a good ally in your life. When you see or hear instances of prejudice, speak up and don’t stay silent. be an example to people you know. If you have kids, teach them what popular culture won’t about racism.
On a larger level, get involved in activism where possible. Donate to or volunteer for organizations who are doing anti-racist work.
It won’t solve every problem, but it will be doing something :)
At this point, I am only interested in getting my worldview out there.(Or something to that effect>)
Exactly!
When Peggy McIntosh introduced this concept, the year was 1988. The world of 1988 is very different from the world of 2008, and times have changed. We have a black president running for office for god’s sake, and he probably will win. He is obviously the best candidate.
In my opinion, the white privilege rhetoric actually increases racism because people who are strongly identified as whites feel blamed, and get angry and defensive because it is a philosophy which says that just by existing, they are contributing unknowingly to the suffering of others. This is the true reason for resistance to this topic. if it does not increase racism, it increases guilt. Looking at my own life, I feel that adding an adjective to privelege like “white” is impossible beyond an individual encounter. Do I have my nice computer because I am white? maybe. But I got it from my father. He is well to do. Is he well to do because he is white or because he is one of the top in his field? Is he one of the top in his field because he got a good edjucation? maybe. did he get a good edjucation because he is white or because his father was a professor who worked hard? well, I don’t know. That was 50 years ago. Ultimately, it is a wonderful thing to have a good computer, but to call it “white privelege” adds an unneeded notion of guilt. it also ignores reality, which is that while an economic imbalance remains from the past, the work that needs to be done with race now is to bring people together. Blacks are angry over the past, and whites are afraid and guilty, and sometimes ingorant. Blacks are also attached to their identity as a poor minority. As Obama said, “the old racial rhettoric has exhausted itself” and white privelege rhetoric is one part of this dead body of words that drags us down into guilt trips and blaming.
Aaron, telling people that they’re causing racism by pointing it out is like telling the victim of a playground bully that he caused the bully to punch him because his nose is bleeding. Shut up, sir.
I’m white and I have no easy answers about the white privilege question and about how some whites respond to it. I know that when I was introduced to the concept I readily understood it and could even agree with it; I have no idea what it’s like to be a person of color but I have heard enough accounts of what they go through to comprehend a little. I have had a few life experiences, also, that give me a glimpse of the other side of things but it seems my whiteness always steps in at the last minute to set things right for me in some way, ultimately.
I think that in the balance the problem is that we are strongly indoctrinated in either-or thinking in this country and can’t grok both-and, as in you can be BOTH lower-class economically AND upper-class racially. It does not compute for many (white) people. In the final balance, if the Powers That Be had to choose between me and an upper-class white person they’d totally go with the UCWP–but if they had to choose between me and a person of color they’d likely choose me. Not as much these days as that used to be true, but it is still true enough to be a serious problem.
And, y’know, I hate to say it but some people just are not going to Get It. I see the same crap go on when there is talk of gender relationships and gender politics. And, to tell you the truth, racial equality activists also have trouble sometimes with intersectionality, and so do feminists. So even “our side” needs to learn to juggle several concepts at once in our minds, sometimes.
But sometimes when a white person objects to the white privilege concept because HE’s not rich, I want to say to him, “Oh, you’re not white?” I’m not sure that would help him Get It, but it might be fun to watch him splutter. :)
Oh, and getting back to Mr. Aaron for a bit: If you think being poor is something to get attached to, I have a bridge in Brooklyn I gotta sell you… see, I’m so attached to being poor that I’ll make shit up to sell you just to get away from it.
NOBODY likes to be poor, and to suggest that black people are “attached to their status as a poor minority” is fucking insulting and racist. But I suppose you’ll say they asked for it because one of them wrote a blog post about white privilege and it offended you. Jeezus.
“When Peggy McIntosh introduced this concept, the year was 1988. The world of 1988 is very different from the world of 2008, and times have changed. We have a black president running for office for god’s sake, and he probably will win. He is obviously the best candidate.”
Yes. Because there is a black candidate that has a legitimate shot as being our president, racism is all over. Everything is all hunky-dory, right?
“In my opinion, the white privilege rhetoric actually increases racism because people who are strongly identified as whites feel blamed, and get angry and defensive because it is a philosophy which says that just by existing, they are contributing unknowingly to the suffering of others.”
Basically, we call that white guilt. And white guilt helps no one. Instead of feeling guilty, white people need to learn how to SHUT UP AND LISTEN and go out and use their privileged status to help eradicate racism so that we can reach an interesting little thing known as pure equality.
“Ultimately, it is a wonderful thing to have a good computer, but to call it “white privelege” adds an unneeded notion of guilt. it also ignores reality, which is that while an economic imbalance remains from the past, the work that needs to be done with race now is to bring people together.”
Continue to grasp at those straws. REACH.
When you get through, it is because of STILL EXISTING white privilege that those economic issues continue to exist - those disparities in education continue to exist due to that notion of white privilege, which you think is somehow outdated, which makes me think that you are speaking from your OWN privilege.
“Blacks are angry over the past, and whites are afraid and guilty, and sometimes ingorant. Blacks are also attached to their identity as a poor minority. As Obama said, “the old racial rhettoric has exhausted itself” and white privelege rhetoric is one part of this dead body of words that drags us down into guilt trips and blaming.”
Blacks are angry over what happens TODAY. Did you not read the post “Thank you, White people?” Did you not read about how hate crimes went up in 2006? Did you not notice that Black men are much more likely to be incarcerated than white men, and that they’re much more likely to serve more time for the same crime? Did you not pay attention to the fact that by and large, people of color are the ones being gentrified out of their homes for WHITE yuppies? Did you not notice that when a person/child/woman of color goes missing, nothing is said, but if a white child/woman goes missing, they get non-stop coverage?
But white privilege isn’t a reality?
If you feel guilt, that’s your issue. But telling us that we should shut up because you feel guilty is crap. Instead of pushing that privileged mindset on us, you need to have a seat and listen to what PoC have to say and not continue to parade around in that ignorance that you yourself say that white people demonstrate.
THIS!!!
I have a few questions and comments.
First, a quote placed in the post states
–Start Quote–
It sometimes puzzles conservatives that progressives are so concerned with what people think. What is racism, sexism, homophobia, etc, after all, other than a way some people think about some other people? And as long as I’m free to pursue my own self-interest, what does it matter what others think of me?
For someone with a lot of privilege, the rational answer is, “it doesn’t matter at all.” The more privileged you are, the less other people’s thoughts count. You go into a store, and you buy what you want, or you don’t buy. You don’t have to worry about what the store clerks think of you - what could matter less?
–End Quote–
I disagree that anyone needs to be concerned what the clerk thinks since the clerk will think something. You can not control the thoughts of any other person. If you let what they say affect you, you are doing harm to yourself by allowing others (who you disagree with strongly) to control your mood/feelings or to make you feel however it is you feel in these instances. Psychologists say that you are replaying the tape that was played to you by (your parents, that prejudiced and ignorant person, etc.).
Could “my privilege” affect me? Sure. I can justify almost anything if I come up with the definition of items to justify my thoughts/actions. However, it is just as possible that, in a world without “racism,” we would all think that it wouldn’t matter what the “clerk” said… Isn’t that what we are working towards?
You see the person at the corner saying, “The world will end!” or “The sky is falling” and you walk by or help them. You likely think they are “ill” or not thinking clearly. Many people laugh openly. Either way, you don’t take that “crazy” statement as fact or let if affect your day.
Yet you state it is our privilege that lets us not be affected? Is it that we are not “crazy” as well? I understand their medical issue(s), but I am not letting that statement affect my mood or how I think about myself. Should we listen to and react to someone else who spews “racist” comments? I think those statements by “those” “racists” is just as “crazy” as the statement about the sky falling…
I really hope you know other people who think like me who might be white… I know people who are white who think that way…
“Race” is a term used to divide–we are all Homo sapiens. We can be “racist” against dogs, cats, and birds, but we can be prejudiced against anything. Prejudiced means the person speaking is pre-judging (without knowing). The “prejudice” speaks more of the person speaking than it does about the person spoken about.
Of course, those are just my opinions. You are, like everyone else, welcome to disagree.
^^^ If anybody was ever looking for an example of white privilege…
There’s just one, big, HUGE, glaring error in your thinking:
THIS IS NOT A WORLD WITHOUT RACISM!
Also, I just LOVE it when people think that all of this is just in our heads, that it’s only our “perception”, that we’re just wishing for racist shit to happen.
Really, people? REALLY?!?
I’m glad this is marked as required reading. I would have denied male privilege, hetero privilege, class privilege, white privilege, etc. exist; but only because I’ve never seen/understood the word privilege used that way before.
Now that I see how you’ve modified the word, I’ll freely admit: that they exist, that words / phrases are needed to allow them to be discussed, and that I can’t think of a better word to use.
It’s nice to find a forum where articles like this are listed, to establish the meaning of phrases (or maybe the phrases used here for the meanings) that will be necessacery for the rest of the discussion.
Thanks Angry,
MG
Hi,
I was reading through this and thought I’d notify you. The link for “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” goes to a 403 Forbidden error page. Google helps, though. The essay can be found at http://mmcisaac.faculty.asu.edu/emc598ge/Unpacking.html
Just thought I’d let you know,
JPS
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